Category Archives: art together

I really love getting a glimpse into how families use Art Together. Anytime I’m tagged in a kids-making-art photo on Twitter or Instagram, that pretty much makes my day. Periodically I want to share some of these pictures here, too.

Making something and releasing it into the world is just part of the process. Once it’s out there, you get to see what people do with it. Kirsten and her kids have done some great things, using the information and activities in Art Together as starting points and really going deeper. I can’t quite describe how happy that makes me, that I can offer something that acts as a spark in that way. Kirsten kindly agreed to having some of her Instagram photos featured today.

The photos here are related to the first two issues of Art Together, Color and Line.

Kirsten told me exploring Art Together has resulted in her son’s love of art in general, and they now spend hours when they visit the art gallery. She went on to say, “R is not the kind of child who is happy to take suggestions or instructions about what to do or how to do things. He prefers to come up with his own ideas and his own projects. But I can read Art Together, get your ideas and suggestions and then use them in a subtle way – e.g. by just sitting down and doing some of your projects myself and seeing where that takes us. It’s an amazing leaping off point! Especially for someone like me who knows nothing about art. In fact, I’ve found that using Art Together has made *me* really want to learn much more about art too. So it’s become a real family activity!”

Thank you so much for sharing, Kirsten!

If you would be willing to share a photo or story of how you’ve used Art Together, I’d love to hear from you! amyhood @ amyhoodarts.com

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The theme for Monday’s after school Art Together class was printmaking, so I decided to share gelatin plate printmaking. It was glorious chaos. Eighteen kids, eight gelatin plates, brayers and sponge brushes and palettes that needed to be shared. Bits of texture and stencils for playing with were strewn about, paint on tables and dripped on the floor and on hands. Thirty-six hands that had a really, really hard time resisting the tactile temptation of thick slabs of gelatin, even though they’d been told that touching it and, even worse, picking it up would degrade or even break it. With that many kids, it’s hard to get around to everybody who might need one-on-one help. I gave a demonstration and encouraged them to experiment and remember to share, because we had about two kids to a plate. Then I tried to check in on everybody.

It was great. Printmaking almost always is. It’s magical. Best to let them experiment and discover as much as possible on their own, with a little guidance if necessary. Some kids made collaboration prints all together and worked out who would take them home. Kids helped other kids. Some felt done after just one, and others made twenty.

Just a small sample of the kids’ prints.

They layered prints and colors and textures with abandon, fearlessly, fabulously. I did not sit down for hours. One parent told me that she was grateful her son–one of the kids who printed right up until we were out of time–has taken to the activities in this program. He is put off by drawing, she said, but he has found inspiration here. Oh! Oh. When you find something you love to do that also brings a spark to others–how lucky is that? I need to figure out how to make this happen more often. Right now trying to do that is a casualty of being in limbo–I can’t lay the groundwork to broaden this work here, and I don’t know exactly where we’ll be next. But when the time comes, I’ll figure it out.

Paint-y hands are happy hands.

I cleaned and wrapped the gelatin plates to bring home and store in my cold garage. Tuesday, I picked three of the better-looking ones and G, N, and I made some prints ourselves. N and I were too busy to make our own prints on Monday afternoon, and G was home sick with a fever both days.

One of N’s gelatin prints.

Gelatin plate printmaking is so much fun, and the plates are easy to make, too. Art Together Issue Three: Printmaking has all the instructions on how to make a gelatin plate and get started printing with it.

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{Click here to be taken directly to the sales page on Payhip. For UK/EU customers, VAT is added during the checkout process and isn’t reflected in the $4 USD price.}

I’ve been plugging along on the winter issue of Art Together and–thanks so much, polar vortex–even though it’s almost March, we’re still firmly in the midst of winter, so I don’t feel behind schedule at all even though I didn’t begin until I was sure I’d have a way to easily sell it no matter where you live (thanks so much, Payhip!). Introducing Issue Six: Math + Art:

From this issue’s Dear Reader:

Math and art are linked in so many ways. It’s not necessary to force a connection; it’s already there, and has been for centuries. This is a comforting idea for those of us who can feel intimidated or anxious by a wide-open, anything goes approach to art-making. I loved my photography classes (in the pre-digital days) precisely because of the mix of creativity and precision. Photography was part art, part science, and it provided a great balance for me. My photography notebook was, essentially, a lab notebook. What happens when you adjust the light? The ratio of chemicals? The exposure or development time? I enjoyed the experimentation and the structure. This mix satisfied both my creative and my logical sides. And while I have loosened up quite a bit over the years when it comes to art-making, I still am comforted by structure and limits at times.

I have a child who likes structure in his art-making as well, and this issue is created with kids and adults like him in mind. Here are some starting points, some guidelines, some ways in which the wonderful predictability of numbers and geometry and the science of how we see can be used to make art…

The 35-page PDF download is available for purchase through Payhip here for $4 USD. For UK/EU customers, VAT is added during the checkout process. Currently all issues of Art Together are listed for $4 USD; you can find them all right here.

Thanks for your continued support, emails, and comments when it comes to this little project of mine. I love seeing and hearing about what you and your kids are exploring and discovering together.

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I was exhausted entering the holiday season. I think two straight months of cleaning and decluttering a 5-person house will do that to anyone. But the two holiday weeks–even with the cooking and such–were restorative. I needed that restful time, the reading, creating, sleeping late (by which I mean 8 am versus 6:15), the indoor days. Although I wasn’t keen on returning to the regular schedule this week, with its early mornings, lots of driving time, and schooling the 10yo, I do feel energized and ready to take it all on.

“All” includes a five-week after-school program at my kids’ school built around the Art Together zines. This has been in the works–originally scheduled for the fall–but with one thing and another it started this week. This is a Very Good Thing. I really enjoy working with kids in this way, and it’s a good experience for me as well. The group is larger than I anticipated, so I conscripted both my boys to help out. They are wonderful at this–they’ve both helped out in these settings before, and they know the materials and the activities. They are extra hands to fetch clean water or more paint or even answer questions. We started with the color wheel and color mixing this week. I just have all good feelings about all of it, for everybody involved.

I’ve also stocked up on library books as I begin researching the next issue of Art Together.

This is one of my favorite parts, y’all.

I received a metal stamping kit for Christmas, and I’ve been making talismans for some folks I know….

I have more to make. Bit by bit.

And finally, I paid for a membership to the University athletic complex again, month by month this winter (because who knows when we might move??), so I can run on their indoor track. I like running. I do not like cold. Every time I see a runner outside all bundled up I feel a little guilty, but…I run because it’s pleasurable. Running IS the means to the end. I’m not doing it for any other outcome but to enjoy the running, and running in bitter cold is more akin to torture for me, and I’m not into suffering, really. (On the flip side, unlike many, I don’t mind running in 95% humidity in the summer. To each his own.) So I’d rather pay the monthly fee and run indoors in shorts and a t-shirt, even if running perfectly flat circles gets a little boring–it’s warm and dry and the air doesn’t hurt my lungs and I start running and I can’t help smiling. Also, since it’s indoors, I’ll listen to music, which I won’t do while running on the road, when I want to hear approaching cars. So it’s a different sort of workout but it still clears my brain and gets me moving and I love it. Which is the whole, entire point of running for me.

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Wow! I am really happy to have this finished! I love researching and creating these magazines (or I wouldn’t do it), and of course I like sitting down and making art with my kids. But I’ve felt so harried with getting our house in shape that finishing this issue was hanging over my head–I wanted it done and out in the world, not reproaching me, not quite complete, from my computer. Here it is. I hope you find it worth the wait.

All the information, and how to purchase, can be found on the Art Together Issue Five: Shape + Space page. You can use the code SHAPE20 for 20% off any Art Together purchase, and speaking of codes, MOVINGSALE is good for 20% off in my Etsy shop until we move. (I’m aiming for less to pack!)

I plan to get back to posting here more regularly. I’m not done with decluttering and such, but I am done with having no balance whatsoever. At some point, all the listing prep will be complete, but I need to not be a frazzled shred by then.

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Karen describes herself as a “paint flinger, salamander catcher, and all-around goofball,” and I can attest that she is as fun and interesting and quirky in person as she seems on her blog, I Am Rushmore. Karen began art-making well into her grown-up years, and she approaches it with the sense of exploration, curiosity, and enthusiasm for the process (versus a focus solely on product) that I hope to nurture in others through Art Together. So I was happy she agreed to be interviewed for Issue Four, which focuses on mixed media–something Karen does so well.

As an early childhood educator, I preached the benefits of process-oriented art with young children. The toddlers I worked with never cared about what they were making, they simply delighted in the act of creating. I sat on the floor and played along with them, and it was the favorite part of my day. Perhaps I’m just a slow learner, but it never occurred to me that this same spirit of open-ended, joyful exploration could be applied to adult art experiences.

The rest of Karen’s interview can be found in the latest issue, along with lots of other inspiration and ideas. Along with her personal blog, Karen also maintains the website Mail Me Some Art, facilitating a mind-bloggling number of themed mail art swaps. She has several open swaps right now, including tape postcards, favorite city postcards, and handmade envelopes. She scans and posts all the artwork she receives (2500 pieces last year!) before sending them on their way through the postal system, so the site provides a constant stream of gorgeous art inspiration.

I hope to continue including interviews in future issues of Art Together, because I think it’s so encouraging to get to know people who are pursuing their artistic passions right now. There are so many ways to do that! I’m not sure that reminder can come often enough.

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A week later than planned but worth the wait, I hope: Art Together Summer 2014: Mixed Media is out in the world today. This is Issue Four, which means a year ago, I was just fleshing out my idea for this zine. Now my green Moleskine that I use as my external brain for this project is full of notes, to-do lists, and brainstorming, and four whole issues exist in reality.

My goal all along has been to provide encouragement and inspire confidence, to demystify art supplies, terms, and techniques, so adults can feel comfortable playing and exploring right alongside kids. Art-making is so much fun and I’ve discovered how vital it is to my sense of well-being. It’s not fair to leave it all to the kids; we adults need it too. And exploring together has been so wonderful for us.

This issue’s focus, Mixed Media/Collage, so easily lends itself to play. Mixed media really is as simple as using more than one artistic medium, in other words, combining art materials. In this issue we learn about the artist Joseph Cornell and create our own assemblage boxes. We play with found paper, collage, photographs, and whatever art materials we choose to combine. We make our own collage book and learn about different types of glue. And we interview Karen Isaacson, the organizational mastermind behind Mail Me Some Art.

We have some fun things coming up, too–some give-aways, an excerpt from Karen’s interview to share, and, inspired by her swaps of mail art, my kids and I will be organizing a mail art swap for kids. That’ll be open to anyone who’s interested, of course, whether or not you purchase Art Together. Check for details before the end of June (hopefully as soon as next week). Here’s to a fun summer of art-making!

All the details on Issue Four, including how to purchase, can be found right here. (Psst: Use code ARTPLAY for 20% off through July 31.)

This is the day I’d planned to have Issue Four of Art Together available, despite spending half of March sick with a bad cold and losing a week in April to the flu. But last week I became sick again, and it turned out to be strep, and that was the last straw. So I requested a week extension from myself, and Myself listened, weighed the facts, and granted it. Mainly it’s just the tech stuff left to do, which does, in fact, require me to be conscious. I had no idea strep was more than just a bad sore throat! I could barely keep my eyes open for a while there, but antibiotics are lovely when you truly need them, aren’t they? Like magic.

Speaking of Issue Four, which focuses on mixed media + collage, if you’re interested in a review copy and/or giveaway, drop me a line at amyhood at amyhoodarts dot com and we’ll discuss.

And finally, if you’re in southern Rhode Island this summer, you can now find my pockets and cards in Thrifty Sister in Peace Dale. This is a great consignment store that also carries work by local artists. (It also happens to be an excellent source of interesting found paper for mixed media and collage.)

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Without really thinking about it or planning it out, I’ve been creating every day. It’s wonderful. The kids and I have been immersing ourselves in trying out ideas for the next issue of Art Together, which focuses on mixed media and collage. Here’s a sneak peek of the title.

The featured artist this issue is Joseph Cornell, and I’ve just finished reading a nearly 400-page biography on him. I suppose this is a bit more than I have to do in order to include him in the zine, but I like biographies, and going that deep certainly doesn’t hurt. The kids have enjoyed learning more about him and his artwork as well. Issue Four will be available in June, as close to June 1 as I can make it.

Along with making art with the kids, I’ve been making art for the upcoming fair.

This is what I have beyond the sewn pouches. I have just a few matted linocut prints, on the left. I have a half dozen stamped small Moleskine notebooks, and below those, a sampling of hand-printed or -stamped cards. The white ones are mixed media cards and work well with the linocuts; the brown ones are kraft cardstock, so I used my stamps on those. I have about ten of each. At the bottom right are large stamped Moleskines, and above those is a box of rocks.

I kind of just like saying “box of rocks!”

In between the making I’ve been writing–a draft of an article for Home/School/Life, and the zine too, of course. It’s a good sort of busy, with all this creating going on, and with enough variety that I can switch between different sorts of creative muscles. And of course, any day that includes art-making and creating is automatically a Very Good Day.

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All text and photos copyright Amy Hood. You may use a photo to link back to a specific activity or post, but if you'd like to use more than one photo or any text, please contact me first: amyhood at amyhoodarts dot com. Thank you!